Since television became a commodity in homes, hotels, offices and other buildings, coaxial (coax in short) networks have regularly been implemented in such facilities. As a result, a large percentage of such facilities built in developed countries during at least the last 50 years are provided with such coaxial networks. Provision of signal access to a building has been accomplished in different ways throughout the years, from the early solution with a local antenna receiver to wired cable TV connection, and later optical fiber networks. Still, there is a need to distribute access within the building, for which the local coaxial network may be used.
Multimedia over Coaxial Alliance (MoCA) is an industry standard alliance developing technology for the connected home. MoCA technology runs over the existing in-home coaxial cabling, enabling whole-home distribution of digital content. MoCA provides the backbone for the home digital entertainment network, and supports streaming media such as standard television and allows linking a set-top box to a TV and other entertainment such as computers or game consoles in multiple rooms using existing wiring.
MoCA is designed and used for providing data access within a home. To operate and gain access to an exterior network provider, a MoCA node device is required. The MoCA node device may be a MoCA adapter or modem, having at least a coaxial connector for connection to the coaxial network, and a network output, such as an Ethernet switch. The node device further includes a MoCA chip or chipset, configured to control media-sharing in accordance with one or more of the MoCA specifications, in cable-equipped households.
In a building complex, a plurality of MoCA node devices may be connected to a common coaxial network. Such coaxial networks may oftentimes have been installed in the building complex for a long time, and exact knowledge of the cable infrastructure is not always available. Today, an administrator has no tool to pinpoint a problem area related to the coaxial network upon installation or service. Furthermore, MoCA end devices are typically installed in private apartments which are not easily accessible for an installer or administrator of the MoCA system.